I want the Red Zone/Sunday ticket for free on Direct TV. Please help me

[poindexter]

I've gotten in the habit of switching providers every two years, in order to get the best price.

I switched back to Direct TV in 2014, and got the Sunday Ticket for free. No such luck this year.

The facts:
I am starting the second year of a two year commitment. I can't threaten to leave.
I don't want free HBO, or any other crap.
I already called them and (unsuccessfully) asked for it for free. I didn't have much bargaining power. I said I was a Dodger fan who was pissed because the Dodger channel was not on Direct TV.

After a 5 minute hold, I was politely offered a $5/month off the $240, 6 month sunday ticket price. That would reduce it from $240 to $210. I declined, and we parted ways for now.

I am going to get it. I do not want to pay anything close to $210 for it.

I am looking for help.

 

[BurnsWhenIPee]

These have worked for me in the past, but not always ...

1) Wait until the first Monday of the month and call first thing in the morning. I've been told that's when the reps in retention (I assume you're asking for retention right off the bat) get new batches of deals to give out).
2) Don't yell or get upset. I just tell them the truth, that my wife thinks we spend too much on TV and I was wondering if there were any deals I was eligible for. I don't mention Sunday Ticket right off the bat, but if they don't bring it up, I will eventually. Typically I've gotten a man who has been in that boat and feels your pain.
3) Look at your contract. The buyout isn't the full value, it's something like $50 per month remaining. Tell them that Dish has offered to pay your buyout and give you the same channels for less money, so there's no good reason not to do it. That's when they should ask if they have Sunday Ticket, and you can say it doesn't matter if you have to pay that much for it, because you won't have it either way.
4) Don't call many times over threatening to leave. I think they log the calls, so if you call every week and don't do anything, they'll know you aren't serious about anything but getting free ST.
5) Don't make it personal with the rep. I've been told they get "X" number of offers to give out - and if they have them, they'll offer it. If they don't have any left, there's nothing they can do.

Good luck.

 

[JohnHammond]

Buyout is $20/month, and you won't get Sunday Ticket for free. Might get a slight discount on packages, but they'll call your bluff.

 

[trifectarich]

The NFL isn't worth all the love you're giving it.

 

[playthrough]

Last year in Indy, the NBC affiliate was in a dispute with DirecTV and it threatened the Colts' season opener. Not a huge deal in my life but I called DirecTV and acted like the world's biggest Colts fan who was ready to switch providers to get that game. They offered a free season of ST. But the rep warned me to cancel it next summer (now) or it would automatically renew. I gotta do that, though it will be a little painful.

 

[BTExpress]

I really hate the modern business model:

Bend over backwards for those who have never been a customer or who threaten to become an ex-customer. Offer absolutely nothing to someone who has been a loyal, uninterrupted customer for 18 years.

 

[Roscablo]

I really hate the modern business model:

Bend over backwards for those who have never been a customer or who threaten to become an ex-customer. Offer absolutely nothing to someone who has been a loyal, uninterrupted customer for 18 years.

I agree. And there is often a price or package that companies will always eventually give you. So why not just do it up front for people who actually want the service? Instead they make you fight for it when they already know they'll give you the damn price anyway. I have and enjoy SirusXM in the car. It's such a pain in the ass to renew at the right price, especially if you don't get the right rep on the phone. For this year they pretty much doubled my price, which they act like is a good deal. Do a simple internet search and see what they'll offer and call and try to get that. The dude doesn't budge. I say I'm not paying it and I'll leave and three or four times on hold I actually get a cheaper deal than I was paying. Makes no sense.

 

[SBR]

I really hate the modern business model:

Bend over backwards for those who have never been a customer or who threaten to become an ex-customer. Offer absolutely nothing to someone who has been a loyal, uninterrupted customer for 18 years.

If you think this is a "modern" concept I take it you've never been married.

 

[poindexter]

I really hate the modern business model:

Bend over backwards for those who have never been a customer or who threaten to become an ex-customer. Offer absolutely nothing to someone who has been a loyal, uninterrupted customer for 18 years.

It's a war out there for everything. Cable. Phone. House insurance. Newspaper subscription. Taking your car for an oil change. You need to be an expert on everything or you will be taken advantage of.

For example, my 80 year-old mom got direct tv last year, first time ever. She noticed her bill this month: up 40 bucks from last month. She called to ask why.
The answer: as a new customer a year ago, she got the NFL package for free. Didn't even know it. They automatically started billing her for 2015. She never watched a second of Sunday ticket.

Kill or be killed. I want to use every asset at my disposal.

 

[bigpern23]

I agree. And there is often a price or package that companies will always eventually give you. So why not just do it up front for people who actually want the service? Instead they make you fight for it when they already know they'll give you the damn price anyway. I have and enjoy SirusXM in the car. It's such a pain in the ass to renew at the right price, especially if you don't get the right rep on the phone. For this year they pretty much doubled my price, which they act like is a good deal. Do a simple internet search and see what they'll offer and call and try to get that. The dude doesn't budge. I say I'm not paying it and I'll leave and three or four times on hold I actually get a cheaper deal than I was paying. Makes no sense.

Same here with Sirius. I got the full deal with all the channels for $92/year for two vehicles as a new subscriber. They wanted to charge me $210 the next year. I told them I'd be happy to pay the introductory price because I feel that's the appropriate value I'd place on their entertainment. If they wanted me to pay the $210, I said it's not worth it to me and I'd cancel. They let me re-up at the same price.

When it comes time to renew, if they try to double it again, I'll cancel. If they incrementally increase the price (say to $100 or $105), I'd keep it.

 

[Dyno]

I let my Sirius subscription lapse because the power cord's connection to my receiver broke. At least once a month, I get an email with an offer to re-up for 5 or 6 months for $20. In December I got one for (I think) a year for $50. $210? I don't think so.

 

[Roscablo]

That just proves the point on all of this. Why not just keep customers, especially happy ones, with the rate you're willing to give them anyway. Why make them work for it? I'm sure it's something like if you can even get a handful of people who don't want to deal with it to pay the higher rate you make more money. But it's a crappy way to do business, especially with someone who's been a loyal customer.

 

[BurnsWhenIPee]

That just proves the point on all of this. Why not just keep customers, especially happy ones, with the rate you're willing to give them anyway. Why make them work for it? I'm sure it's something like if you can even get a handful of people who don't want to deal with it to pay the higher rate you make more money. But it's a crappy way to do business, especially with someone who's been a loyal customer.

Exactly. Give me the best price you can give me and let that be. I'll do the dance and make the call every six months or so to DTV and to Sirius to get the latest offer and some cash knocked off the rate, but it's silly.

That said, I know we've come to the day and age where absolutely everything is negotiable.

 

[MileHigh]

Been with DirecTV since 1998. So much so I have a package that's no longer even being offered and can't be bundled with my ISP or cellphone provider.

I moved a year ago last March and they gave me Sunday Ticket for free as part of a two-year commitment without charging me to put in the new dish at my place. Got my bill last month and it included an automatic renewal of ST. Um, nope. Canceled it online without issues, but yes, it's an automatic renewal.

Will be interesting to see what happens with DirecTV now that the AT&T sale has gone through.

 

[bigpern23]

Exactly. Give me the best price you can give me and let that be. I'll do the dance and make the call every six months or so to DTV and to Sirius to get the latest offer and some cash knocked off the rate, but it's silly.

That said, I know we've come to the day and age where absolutely everything is negotiable.

I don't even buy a TV at Best Buy without negotiating anymore. You can always get a better deal if you ask.

 

[The Big Ragu]

I let my Sirius subscription lapse because the power cord's connection to my receiver broke. At least once a month, I get an email with an offer to re-up for 5 or 6 months for $20. In December I got one for (I think) a year for $50. $210? I don't think so.

When we bought a new car a few years ago, it had XM enabled with a 3-month trial. But the trial never expired. So we had it for more than 2 years for free. Then one day, it was gone. I can live without it, but on long drives (2 or 3 a month), Ms. Ragu likes CNN and BBC. Someone told me you can get a 6-month trial for $20-something. So I called and got it. At the end of the 6 months, I called again and took the game of "Let's Make a Deal" to another 6 months for $20-something, and I renewed. That 6 months expired and I called to get rid of it. We barely were listening. They were willing to give me the $20-something for 6 months, though, if I wanted to stay. I didn't bother, though, because we really haven't been listening.

 

[Cosmo]

Had the same thing happen at my gym. My rate is $35 a month. They run promotional rates constantly trying to get new customers, and I finally asked why their loyal longtime customers can't get a break now and then. Just checked my bank account, and they gave me the $24.99 promotional rate this month. Small victory, I suppose.

 

[JackReacher]

Twice in the last decade or so, I've either let my SiriusXM sub run out or I've called and canceled. Both times, it kept working for months after. Then, suddenly, it was shut off. Pretty pumped for the millions of emails I'm going to get, asking me to rejoin.

 

[BurnsWhenIPee]

I don't even buy a TV at Best Buy without negotiating anymore. You can always get a better deal if you ask.

I did the same thing at Lowes for a new refrigerator. They dropped $300 off a $2000 model without even blinking.

 

[BTExpress]

I did the same thing at Lowes for a new refrigerator. They dropped $300 off a $2000 model without even blinking.

I can't conceive of a refrigerator that I would pay more than $700 for.